How the 2026 Presidential Vote Will decide Zambia’s ‘Youth in Power’

By Ruth Kangwa-Ndhlovu (Founder- Girls Gone Political)

Zambians will go to the polls on Thursday 13th August 2026 to elect a Republican President.

What is less widely appreciated is that this same vote will also determine how many young people each political party sends to Parliament and local councils.

At the heart of this development is the Electoral Process (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which contains a provision that could fundamentally reshape how young people access political power in Zambia.

Under the proposal, 15 youth Members of Parliament would enter the National Assembly through Proportional Representation under the Mixed Member Elements (MMEs).

These are not constituency seats. They will be drawn from party lists that are directly linked to the presidential vote.

Of particular importance is Proposed Section 36 C (4) of the Bill. In simple terms, it requires that anyone placed on a party’s youth list must remain a youth for the entire five-year parliamentary term.

The Constitution, as amended by Act No. 13 of 2025, defines youth as persons aged 18 to 35 years.

When this definition is applied to a five-year parliamentary cycle, it means political parties cannot nominate older or “convenient” candidates to occupy youth seats under the guise of youth representation.

From a legal and policy perspective, this is not exclusion. It is a deliberate design to ensure that youth seats remain genuinely youthful from the first sitting of Parliament to the last.

For political party leaders, this provision is both an alert and an invitation. It signals that parties must move beyond treating young people merely as campaign mobilisers and begin preparing them as future decision-makers.

Youth seats should not be distributed as rewards for loyalty, popularity, or social media visibility. They must be earned through competence, preparation, and capacity.

In practical terms, this challenges party leadership to:
● Identify and groom young leaders well before campaign season;
● Invest in structured training, mentorship, and policy exposure;
● Prioritise substance over popularity; and
● Think generationally, rather than only about the 2026 election.

This is ultimately a leadership test. Will political parties use youth lists to protect insiders, or to cultivate capable young legislators? Will they elevate echo chambers, or independent young thinkers who can debate, legislate, and govern responsibly?

At the local government level, this proposal is equally significant. Even where young people do not contest ward-based seats, youth councillors under proportional representation could sit in council chambers and influence decisions on roads, health services, markets, and the use of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF).

Impact does not reside only in Parliament. It is also felt in local councils where real community decisions are made. Young people should therefore consider leadership pathways such as councillor or council chairperson, where they can directly shape development outcomes.

The central question is therefore not simply how many youth seats will exist, but which young people will occupy them and why.

Do we want symbolic representation, or substantive participation? Young faces in rooms, or young ideas shaping policy?

The Bill remains under public debate, as it should. If engaged with seriously, this moment offers Zambia an opportunity to move beyond hearing young voices at rallies toward trusting them inside decision-making spaces. – Girls Gone Political 

The future belongs to the generation we prepare today.